The Longest Con of All
by AlwaysACritic
Summary: This is a very different take on Angela Jane and her relationship with Patrick. It plays with the ideas that things are not always as they appear and that people believe what they want to believe.


**Once this idea popped into my head, I just couldn't let it go. I think in an odd kind of way, something like this could make sense. It would explain a lot of things. **

* * *

Patrick Jane zipped his suitcase shut and carried it downstairs. Leaving it by the door, he walked into the kitchen to find Charlotte helping Angela make cookies. His two favorite girls looked up and Charlotte exclaimed, "Daddy, look, I'm making heart cookies! They're going to have pink icing and everything!"

Jane smiled at his daughter, "And I bet they'll be really, really good. Will you save a few for me?"

"OK, Daddy, I'll save you some."

"Thanks, sweetheart. I'll be back tomorrow night. And since you are being nice enough to save me some cookies, I'll bring you a little surprise back from San Francisco."

Charlotte got even more excited, "A puppy?"

"I don't think a puppy would like to go on the airplane."

At Charlotte's look of disappointment, he quickly added "Don't worry, I'll think of something good."

Jane's phone range, and he quickly pulled it out and answered it. "Hello." A few seconds later he said, "Great, I'll be right out."

He looked at Angela. "That was the car service. The driver is outside to take me to the airport."

He picked Charlotte up and kissed her on the cheek. "Be good for Mommy, princess."

Charlotte hugged him and kissed him back. "I will. I'll miss you, Daddy."

"Me too, baby."

He put her down and walked over to Angela and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Call me if you need anything."

"Don't worry. We'll be fine."

"I gotta go. Bye."

He walked out to the living room, grabbed his bag and went out the door. By the time the driver took his bag and he was getting into the car, he was already thinking about his upcoming appearances in San Francisco and how much publicity he would get from them.

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Angela, holding Charlotte's hand and carrying her bag, walked up to the Starks' door and rang the bell. Emily Stark opened the door and greeted them both warmly and invited them in. Her daughter, Charlotte's friend Jenny, grabbed Charlotte excitedly and pulled her in. "Charlotte, you have to come see. Snowflake had her kittens."

Charlotte quickly turned to Angela, "Bye, Mommy, I'll see you tomorrow," before she turned to hurry off.

"Wait just a second young lady." Angela called out. Charlotte turned back to see what could possibly be important enough to keep her from newborn kittens.

"You forgot your overnight bag. Now give me a kiss before you run off."

Angela bent down and Charlotte took her bag and kissed her mother. Angela smiled at her daughter, " Have fun with Jenny, and behave for Mrs. Stark."

"I will," she quickly replied before she ran off with Jenny.

Angela smiled at Emily and said, "Well, at least that should keep them occupied for a few hours."

"I'm sure you're right. You should prepare yourself. I suspect Charlotte will be asking you if she can have a kitten when you pick her up."

Angela groaned, "Oh, God. She will. I'll have to talk to Patrick about it."

Emily laughed, "Well the good news is, they won't be old enough to leave their mother for a while. So you have some time to decide. Come, sit down. I'll make us some tea."

"Oh, I would love to. But I'm meeting some friends a little later. It's so rare that I have time to myself, so I couldn't pass the opportunity up. Thanks again for taking her, by the way."

"No problem at all. Charlotte's a doll. And you've let Jenny sleep over so many times that I'm surprised she doesn't have her own room there by now."

Angela laughed. "Still, thank you. And call me if she gives you any problems."

"She never does. Have a good evening, Angela."

"You too, Emily."

The two women said goodbye and Angela turned to walk back to her car. After a quick stop at home to change and pick up a few things, she was on her way into town.

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Angela got off the elevator and walked down the hall to suite 704 and knocked on the door. When the door opened she was grabbed and pulled inside before she could even speak. The door slammed shut behind her and she found herself roughly pushed up against it, with a large male body pressed up against her.

Warm, full lips were kissing their way down her neck and strong hands were caressing her body and unbuttoning her blouse.

"Now that's what I call a greeting," she managed to say before those warm full lips left her neck and turned to her mouth.

He smiled against her and pulled away briefly to say, "You aint seen nothing yet."

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Angela woke to the sound of muffled voices in the other room. Soon after the bedroom door opened, and her lover smiled at her.

"And I was looking forward to finding some creative way to wake you. You spoiled all my fun."

Angela gave him a sleepy smile. "I don't know about that. You seemed to be having quite a bit of fun a little while ago."

"That's true, and I hope to have more fun a little later. But right now, I'm hungry. Ready for some dinner? I ordered your favorites."

"Starving. You always take such good care of me. You anticipate my every need."

He just smiled and said "That's what I'm here for. To grant your every wish before you even know you have it."

"You do that very well. Maybe that's why I love you."

"And here I thought it was my pretty face."

"Well, that doesn't hurt either."

He just laughed and Angela got up from the bed and put a robe on. They went into the living room where the table was already set up with all her favorites from the room service menu. They were regulars here, meeting as often as they could, always in the same suite. He was in town so much on business that he rented the suite full-time for convenience. She had visited him here enough in the past four months that she knew the menu inside out, and he had paid attention to her likes and dislikes. They shared an excellent bottle of wine as they ate dinner, and talked about everything and nothing.

Angela was thoroughly enjoying herself and pleasantly anticipating being able to spend the night. That happened very rarely. While they met a couple of times a week, it was usually stolen hours in the middle of the day while Charlotte was at school. Times when she was supposedly at yoga or the spa, or shopping, or at a committee meeting for one of the many charities she was involved with. Patrick was so wrapped up in his career, that he never questioned what she did with her own time.

Despite the issues in her marriage, she still felt a little guilty about this relationship. She never thought she would be a cheater. When she got married she was young and in love. She still loved Patrick on some level, but she no longer was _in love _with him. She no longer looked at him the way she did when they were first together. She knew him too well and had discovered too much about him to ever feel that way again.

With each year that passed she grew more and more disillusioned with his broken promises and his con man ways. She thought when they got married that they were escaping the carnie lifestyle. Little did she know they would just be living a more luxurious version of it. Patrick's work as a fake psychic cheated people out of their money. His "clients" were in reality just his marks. He kept promising he would quit, but she knew he never would. They had more than enough money to last the rest of their lives, but still he continued.

She knew he loved being the smartest person in the room. He loved the thrill of pulling off a perfect con. She knew his ever-growing ego needed more stroking than just she and their daughter could provide. He craved fame like an addict craved his drug. The more he got, the more he wanted. Their fights became more bitter and frequent. He traveled more often. The broken promised started to take their toll. Eventually, she accepted that this is just how it was. He would never change. He was too selfish. His needs came before hers.

Once she made that realization, things became easier in a warped kind of way. She fought with him less often, realizing the futility of it. Their home life actually improved, at least on the surface. To him, she was sure she still appeared to be the sweet, loving wife she had always been. She was easily able to hide her dissatisfaction from him. After all, she was a carnie too. She knew how to hide her true emotions just as well as he did. Besides, he was too busy making money and TV appearances to really look that closely at what was going on with her. He took it for granted that she accepted him as he was, and always would.

Thank God she had Charlotte. The little girl was sweet and innocent and loved her unselfishly. She brightened her days. Sadly, once Charlotte started school, she had more empty hours of the day to fill. Sitting around the house, as beautiful as it was, depressed her when she was alone. So she became more involved in more activities. And then she met him.

She was instantly attracted to him. After all, he was a very attractive man. And he was charming and funny and intelligent…some of the same qualities that had attracted her to Patrick in the first place. But unlike her husband, he wasn't a fraud. He ran a legitimate business that made real products. He didn't cheat and steal for a living. Despite all he had accomplished, he didn't need to always be the center of attention. In fact, he seemed much happier in the background. And he was attentive. He saw her…_really_ saw her. Like Patrick hadn't in a very long time. He knew when she was having a bad day, and always had exactly the right thing to say. He lavished attention on her, and put her needs first. In that regard, he was the exact opposite of her husband.

In hindsight, it was almost inevitable. As the weeks past, they grew closer and closer before eventually beginning an affair. It was exciting, and passionate, and sweet, and tender. And she was happy and in love.

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When Angela awoke in the morning, they made slow, languid love before eating breakfast and showering together. As she was gathering her things together, he took her hand and said he wanted to talk to her about something. They sat on the sofa and he told her that he didn't want to sneak around anymore. A few hours here and there weren't enough. He wanted to be with her every day, and every night. He wanted her to leave Jane and marry him. He was in love with her, and wanted to be with her. He was ready to love Charlotte as if she was his own, just because she was Angela's.

Angela was shocked, but at the same time she was excited at the possibilities. She didn't know what to say, so in the end she asked him for time to think about it. He agreed, and they said their goodbyes. Angela left, and went to pick Charlotte up from the Starks.

Over the next few days she could think of nothing else. He offered her the chance to have the kind of marriage she had thought she would have with Patrick. The chance to have a husband she could be proud of, instead of one she prayed wouldn't be arrested on fraud charges. She didn't want to hurt Patrick though. She still loved him, though it was only a shadow of the love she used to have for him. She thought that mainly she loved the boy he used to be. The one with so much potential, and so much sweetness. The man had not lived up to the boy's potential.

If it was just her, she would leave him. He would be hurt, but she knew he would quickly move on. His pride might be a little bruised, but with an ego the size of his he would bounce back quickly.

But it wasn't just her. There was Charlotte to think about. Whatever complaints she had about Jane, he was a good father. Charlotte loved her Daddy. He tucked her in every night that he was home. He always found a way to make her feel special, even if he no longer did the same for Angela. To force Charlotte away from her father into some shared custody arrangement was just a distasteful thought. It would be selfish of her to put her own needs above those of her child. And of often as she criticized Patrick for his selfishness, she refused to be like him.

So by the end of the third day, she had made her decision. She would stay with her husband, and she would end her affair. She didn't know how it could possibly continue after this. He deserved better. He deserved the chance to find a woman who was free to love him and be with him. She couldn't keep him chained to her and settling for crumbs, because that's all she would have to give him. A few stolen hours every week, and spending every night alone. He was too good a man. Even if he was willing, she wouldn't let him make that sacrifice for her. She loved him too much.

So she met with him again. They made love one final time, and she committed every moment, every touch to memory. She felt like her heart was breaking, but she stuck to her decision. She said goodbye and walked out the door.

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Red John walked up the stairs and made his way down the hall, too well-practiced to make any noise that would alert the sleeping residents. When he got to the first bedroom, he slowly opened the door. He could see well enough from the nightlight to know that the bed was empty. Clearly it was a little girl's room…full of pink and purple lace and ruffles, with a doll house and a child's table and tea set. It was a room fit for a little princess, but the princess was missing. He continued down the hall checking the other empty guest rooms as he went. Finally he reached the master bedroom at the end of the hall.

He slowly opened the door without making a sound. The moonlight shown in through the windows, revealing the sleeping woman and child in the bed. He walked to the side of the bed the woman was on. He stared at her for a few seconds before he reached over her and quickly cut the child's throat. He had always liked children. He refused to make one suffer more than absolutely necessary. The child's thrashing quickly woke the mother. But Red John had her pinned down before she could make a move.

He looked into her shocked and terrified eyes and said, "You chose badly, sweetheart."

He took his time killing her. She was his greatest masterpiece yet.

When he was finished, he left the note he had written for Patrick Jane taped to the bedroom door.

He had waited for the right moment to kill them, biding his time while he planned. When he saw Patrick Jane give that idiotic interview on TV, looking so smug as he dared to speak about things of which he had no understanding, Red John realized the moment had come.

Angela Jane had broken his heart. He would have made her the center of his world. Honored her as his queen. But she turned down his proposal and broke off their relationship to keep her family together. She stayed with that two-bit hustler when she could have been with him. And for that she had to pay. And so did her husband who had never deserved her. The child was collateral damage.

He knew that Patrick Jane had no idea that he had been screwing his wife twice a week for months. Angela was a good liar. Even he had fallen for her lies. He had believed her when she said she loved him. Jane would have no idea why Angela and Charlotte really died…he would make sure of it.

He knew Patrick Jane was vain enough to believe that his silly words about Red John on TV had provoked the murders. As if he gave a damn what a worthless fool like Jane thought. He chuckled at the very idea. But he was more than happy to let Patrick believe what he wanted. He would let the guilt eat Mr. Jane alive. Jane would spend the rest of his life believing he was responsible for the murders of his wife and child, never suspecting that his beloved wife had betrayed him and caused the death of his innocent little girl.

Red John couldn't wait to see how his deceit and manipulation would affect Patrick Jane. He had never before tried to toy with a person in such a way, but he had a feeling he was going to enjoy it very much. He could only hope that Jane's reaction didn't disappoint him. Conning the con man was going to be fun.


End file.
